Issue: Apex turned off entirely

[ActiveAngel]

Has anybody else had a similar issue?

About an hour before i got home, my Apex heartbeat notified me that it had disconnected. Other electronics at home seem fine, including video cameras.

Arrive home and the Apex is completely off. The blue/orange/multi-colored indicator light... is also completely off. I checked the breakers, they are all fine. Plug return pump and other units directly into the same outlet; everything works fine. It appears that the Apex just stopped working.

It never got wet or anything. Completely dry, wall mounted, not even exposed to splashing as its in a separate cabinet.

Thoughts?

 

[ActiveAngel]

Btw: immediately plugged in Return Pump, heaters, circulation pumps.

Temp had only dropped to 75.7 F, as its a big tank and it was only an hour.

 

[ichthyoid]

Is the Apex plugged into the EB832, & that plugged in also? (Just to state the obvious...)

If you have a power brick compatible with the Apex, you can plug it in to the brick & bypass the EB832, to see if it's the brain or power strip?

 

[Billldg]

Have you tried to reset the Apex. I would unplug it for 5 minutes to allow the capacitors to drain, and then plug it back in to see it that resets it.

Do you you have a plug for the Apex to directly connect it to a outlet?

12V Power Supply

12v Power Supply for Neptune Apex Controllers applies power to the head unit If you have an Apex Controller, more than likely you are trying to protect against equipment failure, along with monitoring, and alarm capabilities that can notify you in the event when something is going wrong. The 12V...

www.bulkreefsupply.com

 

[urbanknight]

That happened to me a year ago. No apparent reason and it would not come back on even after reset. Neptune ended up sending me a new unit and never shared what went wrong.

 

[ActiveAngel]

@ichthyoid yup. And i dont have an extra power brick at the moment.

@Billldg yes, i also tried resetting. Nothing happens. I dont know of i have that direct cord to bypass the EB832. I dont believe so.

@urbanknight Weird. Tech support didnt answer my call today, so ill try again tomorrow.

 

[ichthyoid]

Also, change which USB port the cord to the brain is plugged into on the EB832.

I probably have a 12 vdc power brick, since they are universal connectors you might try it?

I can attempt this on one of my Apex brains, to be sure, if needed?

 

[ActiveAngel]

Thanks. Ill check tomorrow. Goodnight yall

 

[scuba steve]

Have you looked at the circuit breaker on the back of the EB832? It's a little white post sticking out the back, just above where the power cord enters the unit. If that gets popped you can push it back in to reset it.

 

[ActiveAngel]

Have you looked at the circuit breaker on the back of the EB832? It's a little white post sticking out the back, just above where the power cord enters the unit. If that gets popped you can push it back in to reset it.

Haha, i didnt know about that. Ill check that first thing tonight. It would explain all observations so far, so its a solid lead.

 

[ichthyoid]

If that happened, then the question becomes- why?

 

[DiefsReef]

Interesting, I didnt remember there was a circuit breaker button either..

 

[DiefsReef]

If that happened, then the question becomes- why?

If its tripped then it was an overload of some sort i would imagine. The guide below shows max amps/watts per outlet..

WARNING – DO NOT EXCEED ELECTRICAL RATINGS:
• The maximum load rating of each individual AC outlet is 7 amps; do
not exceed this.
• The total current/power draw for all active outlets must not exceed
15 amps or 1500 watts, whichever is less.
• The combined total maximum load on the (2) DC24 outputs and the
(3) 1LINK ports must not exceed 100 watts.

https://www.neptunesystems.com/downloads/docs/EB832_Guide.pdf

 

[ActiveAngel]

If that happened, then the question becomes- why?

My thoughts exactly. With colder temps, my heaters are engaging more often. Perhaps they engaged simultaneously...

But im not going to get ahead of myself. I still dont know if it tripped or not.

 

[ActiveAngel]

Update: Fuse was tripped. Good news, easy solution.

Heaters are suspected contributing factors. Looking at readings from yesterday, temperature was at its lowest when the Apex tripped.

Currently working on putting everything back together again, but wanted to give yall an immediate update.

 

[ichthyoid]

Fwiw,

I don’t know how much total current draw there is on all of your system components? That said…

It is customary to derate the circuit breaker amperage by 20%, specifically when continuous, or semi-continuous loads like your heaters, may exist. I’m also referring to the breaker in your panel box here, not just the one in the Apex EB832.

So, a 15 amp breaker should service a maximum of 12 amps of equipment. A 20 amp breaker would be good for 16 amps max.

That helps eliminate overdrawing of current, undue strain on the breakers and such instances as you had, from happening. The added strain generates more heat, which may lead to shorter component lifetime as well.

Derating also provides some margin of safety whenever current surges may occur, like if you have large pumps turning on and off. These are inductive loads, due to their coils/windings, and consequently may be prone to surging current, due to physics.

Another way to mitigate potential overload problems is to run multiple circuits, wherever the amperage may exceed what a single circuit breaker is safely capable of.

I believe you could run 2 EB832’s from a single Apex brain, with each EB832 being on a separate circuit, without any problem. Thus, distributing the loads across multiple circuit breakers.

So, even though breakers are rate tested at 100% of their capacity, it is often prudent to run them below that, by derating.

See-

Sizing a Circuit Breaker

Circuit breakers are designed to carry 100% of their rated current while the NEC dictates an 80% application. Why the difference?

www.ecmweb.com

and-

Multiple EB832

Silly but real question.. I have 2 EB832's at the moment I only have one install and planned to this morning to installing the second but my question is I will be utilizing all 16 outlets would it be wise to plug both in the same outlet or slit them, at the moment I'm using 2 separate outlets...

forum.neptunesystems.com